Join me at Embody Wellness for this special heart-themed February workshop. We will practice a mix of restorative yoga poses to open the heart space in the physical body and yin yoga poses to stimulate the heart and small intestine meridians which govern our capacity to love and be loved.

Imbalanced heart and small intestine Qi can result in digestive problems, heartburn, poor circulation, heart problems and low moods. When heart Qi is balanced we can have a greater ability to connect with others, feel more vitality, joy and inner peace.

Yin and restorative yoga are both deep, meditative practices which activate the parasympathetic nervous system (calming the body’s fight/flight response). Poses can typically held for 3 to 10 minutes or longer. In yin, the focus is on moving deeper into the connective tissues of the body (ligaments, tendons and fascia – the cling-film-like ‘tissue’ which holds our muscles together), while in restorative the emphasis is more on facilitating physiological rest to promote deep relaxation.

We will close our workshop practice with a calming Yoga Nidra (‘Yogic Sleep’) meditation.

Join me for this calming and nourishing workshop which will introduce you to the principles and many benefits of Restorative Yoga. As we shift into Winter, the yin season, the emphasis of our practice will be to nourish and calm our selves, storing and reserving energy in preparation of the season ahead.

In Restorative Yoga (sometimes referred to as ‘active relaxation’) we consciously manipulate the nervous system to create ease. Props are used to facilitate relaxation by supporting the body in passive postures for extended periods (anything from 5 to 20 minutes). While the body is supported we can completely relax into each posture. This enables us to relieve the negative effects of day-to-day stress, calming the body’s “fight flight” response to facilitate proper rest.

For women this is also a wonderful pose to practise during your time of the month and during menopause.

Using props such as pillows, cushions and blankets provide support and facilitate physiological relaxation. I sometimes set myself up in this pose for my daily Savasana if I am feeling particularly tired.

You can use a yoga bolster if you happen to have access to one, but you really don’t need any special props for this pose – just grab hold of as many blankets, pillows and cushions as you need to ensure you have enough support and feel comfortable. Stack your pillows/cushions/stacked blankets or bolster on your mat or the floor so that they are on a diagonal (your head will rest at the higher end). Here is how to get into the pose:

– Sit with your tailbone at the lower end of your pillows/cushions/blankets or bolster

– Lie back on your support using your arms to ease yourself down. Your head needs to be supported here too so do adjust as necessary (NB – you may wish to place an optional folded blanket or extra cushion under your head).

– Place the soles of your feet together with your knees out to each side. Place extra support under each knee so that your legs are supported. Allow your arms to relax by your sides or on your abdomen.

– Cover your eyes with an eye pillow or light scarf or close your eyes to take your focus inwards

– Stay in this pose for ideally 10 minutes, but longer if you like. (I can often stay here for 20 minutes.)

It does not look like much but this pose is so relaxing and so simple that almost anyone can do it. I often take Savasana like this at home. I find it incredibly helpful for easing lower back discomfort and it’s wonderful if you’ve been on your feet all day or travelling. It’s also an ideal pose if you need a mini-break in the office.

In this short video, filmed at evolve, I show you how to set yourself up in this pose. If you would like to do this pose with some additional props, then an eye pillow over the eyes or on the forehead and placing some weight on your abdominal area (e.g. a folded blanket, or a sandbag, if you have access to one, resting across your lower ribs and stomach) can be incredibly calming too.

Time flies when you’re taking Savasana. The more you practice, the truer this becomes! At least, this is what my experience has been so far.

Back in September 2014 I embarked on a 365 day Savasana practice. The aim – to practice for Savasana for 20 minutes each day. I did not know what to expect. But I knew I had to do something about taking out some time for myself each day as well as address my difficulty with allowing myself to be still (without that guilty feeling that there was something else I should be getting done instead!).

I find it hard to believe six months have already passed. Some days my twenty minutes has extended into thirty minutes and it feels like no time at all. I notice patterns depending on how I am feeling. For instance, when I have been working long hours or feeling more stressed there is a high chance that I will fall asleep. Falling asleep during Savasana is not ideal, but it does tend to be a sign that I am exhausted. That said, the good thing about this is it gives me a clear signal to look again at my schedule and ask myself if I am filling my diary with anything unnecessary.

Most days, (when I am not falling asleep part-way through) my Savasana is when I meditate. So, my meditation practice has over the past six months shifted from sitting to lying down. Part of me did feel I was some how ‘cheating’ by meditating lying down. However, my mind was changed during my Yin Yoga intensive earlier this year with Norman Blair when Maitripusha Bois who led a meditation session with us talked about lying down meditation. There are also days when I listen to a guided meditation like this one from Tara Brach while in Savasana.

There are days when I have kicked myself for deciding to do this. Ah, 365 days of savasana sounded like such a good idea at the time! However, I am very happy to find (especially on the days where I think I don’t have time) that practising does not take time, it gives time. Always. I never think, “Ah, I shouldn’t have bothered with that Savasana.” As a consequence I feel overall more content and more determined to be less ‘busy’, that does not mean that I want to sit around doing nothing all day, but rather it has made me more aware of looking at how much of my time is spent doing things I want to do versus things I do not want or need to do.

Now I am just past the halfway-mark, I am already looking forward to the next six months.

For more on The 365 Savasana Project or to give it a try for yourself, please click here.

In September 2014 I embarked on the 365 Savasana Project – the decision to practice Savasana for 20 minutes a day for 365 days. As we are about to embark on a new year, I also I find myself a quarter of the way through my year of daily Savasana and it feels like an ideal time to reflect on how it’s been so far. So, how has it been…?

HARD!

(I bet you didn’t expect that from a yoga teacher ) I did not expect it to be easy but so far it certainly has been much harder than I envisaged.

The actual act of lying down is simple. It is getting there every day, regardless of what is going on that has not been easy. And that’s coming from someone who loves Savasana and Restorative Yoga. In that case, why has it been so hard?

Resistance.

This has been (and continues to be) the biggest challenge. But I refuse to throw in the towel because I know that the more I feel resistance to practising Savasana, the more I need Savasana. I always, without exception, feel better afterwards.

The busier things get, the easier it becomes to neglect self-care. Yet, that’s when we most need to take care of ourselves. That’s been my personal experience, at least. Do you relate? Do you too find that you put your own self-care on the back burner as the pace of life picks up speed? Maybe you are taking care of others or have a demanding job, or you’re running your own business? There are a multitude of reasons why self-care may inadvertently fall by the wayside, especially during periods of chronic stress.

I’ve often prided myself on how much I can achieve in a day. Getting lots done and ticking items off my to-do list (the same list that somehow continues to grow as fast as I tick things off) can bring me great satisfaction. However, I’ve learned that being busy is not all it’s cracked up to be. Slowing down and practising Savasana reminds me just how powerful doing less can be. We do not have to worship at the altar of busy. For me, the past year has brought many ups and downs, as I’m sure it has for you too. My default, when the going gets tough is to, albeit unconsciously, let my own needs slide.

Let 2015 be different.

If you haven’t started your 365 Savasana but would like to, then why not begin today? You can find more details on how to get started by clicking here. I began my 365 days in September, but there is no official start or end date and it doesn’t cost anything apart from the time you allow yourself to practise. It is not a competition. It’s really about getting into the habit of taking some time for yourself each day so that not only can you give your best, you can be at your best. So, far from being selfish, you’ll be helping those close to you too. It is a simple and wonderful way to practice self-care.

However, if 365 days of Savasana is not for you, then I still encourage you to find healthy ways to look after yourself when you feel out of balance. Having your own personalised self-care toolkit at your disposal when you most need it will serve you very well.

Supported Twist – Aid digestion, reduce water retention and relieve stress on your back muscles with this wonderful Restorative Yoga pose that’s not just for Christmas!

Also, like all Restorative Yoga poses this Supported Twist is great to practice if you have been feeling stressed or fatigued.

It’s really simple to do at home. You can use a yoga bolster if you have one, but you really don’t need any special yoga props – as you can see in this picture, I’m using bed pillows. If you want to create a similar depth to a yoga bolster then you can wrap two bed pillows together in a blanket or bath towel. You can also achieve a similar effect with cushions or take some blankets or throws from your sofa, fold lengthways and stack on top of one another – whatever works best for you!

Here’s how:

Arrange your pillows / stacked blankets so that one end is slightly elevated (as pictured)

Sit on the ground with your right hip at the lower end of your pillows / stacked blankets with your knees bent (your legs can rest on each other or you can separate them – whichever feels most comfortable)

Turn your torso to the right, placing your hands on either side of your pillows / blankets

Take an inhale, lengthening the front of your body; on the exhale ease your torso on to your pillows

Allow your arms to rest comfortably on the floor

For a deeper twist (optional), turn your left ear down to your pillow so that your head is facing the opposite direction to your knees

Stay in this pose on the right for up to 4 minutes then repeat on your left side for the same duration.

No matter how hold I get, September is always associated with ‘Back to School’. The move into Autumn symbolises a time when many of us feel we need to get our heads down and get back to work after the summer. And before we know it, our daily calendars are full to bursting (if they weren’t already, that is).

I have an admission. I don’t like being busy. I like to be productive, to be effective and actually get things done. But, busy? To me, it’s overrated. I’ve increasingly noticed that whenever I say that I am busy the response is usually “that’s good”. And for a long time that was my response too. But why is that?

We have more time-saving technology and services at our fingertips than at any other time in history, yet we all seem to be busier than ever. Some of us wear our Busyness like a badge of honour. But is there a problem here? Are we confusing busyness with effectiveness?

Yoga teachers are certainly not immune from this. In London, where I live and work I see exhausted, scheduled to the hilt yoga teachers regularly. And I have fallen into this routine before too. For every class or client you guide through their yoga practice, you are giving your energy. So, there’s no surprise really that if you don’t take steps to replenish, it’s just a matter of time until you’ll burn out. However you spend your days, whether you teach yoga, work in an office, are a stay-a-home parent or anything and everything in-between, we can all work to burnout. But whom is that serving? From the point of view of teaching yoga, it’s tough to give your best in this state.

The busier we are, the less time we have. Time is arguably our most valuable commodity and it’s irreplaceable. It’s a significant thing to lose.

I think it’s time to stop worshipping at the altar of busy. Being busy for busyness sake or to attain more ‘stuff’ isn’t all its cracked up to be. What if we took another look and scrutinised what we are actually busy with? Try it and you might find there are things you can take off your to-do lists and lighten your mood and improve your wellbeing at the same time. Give it a go and notice the relief this brings.

If I suggested that you put your lengthy to-do list to one side and lie down for twenty minutes right now, what would your response be?

(I think I can hear you shouting that you are too busy from here!)

Supported Savasna - here I'm using pillows for the pose - it's easy to improvise with cushions and blankets too

Maybe it would feel lazy or indulgent when you have so much to do? But I invite you to look at your life and ask what you hold most dear. Of course, we all have responsibilities and obligations we must meet. But busyness and meaning are not the same thing. It comes back to balance and being able to tune in to what your body needs.

During Savasana the parasympathetic nervous system is activated (the part of the autonomic nervous system in charge of your body’s rest and digest activities). Consequently, it is deeply nourishing and can have a regenerative effect on your entire system, far more replenishing than normal sleep.

If you find yourself feeling stressed, rushed off your feet or generally frazzled, this Supported Savasana is a good place to start. As well as helping to calm a busy mind it can make a real difference to sleep quality.

How do we get there?

In lieu of the yoga props you would find at a studio you can improvise with what you have to hand – pillows, blankets, cushions, the throw from your sofa….

(NB – I’m suggesting a version here that I find works very well, but what’s most important is that you feel comfortable, so adjust your props as much as you need to before you settle.)

Have a timer to hand that you can easily set to twenty minutes once you are settled into position.

– Create a comfortable space to lie down – if you have a yoga mat, place a blanket on top covering the surface of the mat for extra cushioning. If you don’t have a mat use extra blankets to create a thicker base
– Before you lie down, place a cushion or folded blanket for your head and neck to rest on
– Carefully, lie down on your back and place a thick rolled up blanket (or pillows / cushions under your knees). Allow your legs to relax and roll outwards.
– If you find that your heels do not touch the floor, take a rolled up bath towel (rolled onto a long ‘sausage’ shape) or cushions and place underneath your ankles for support
– Cover your eyes with an eye pillow or scarf
– Extend your arms out by your sides, palms facing up. Relax your hands – you will notice that your fingers will curl towards your palms.

From here, allow your body to be supported by the props and the ground beneath you. With each out breath visualise any remaining tension melting away. Just be here. See what happens. Notice if any resistance comes up to staying there.

If you find twenty minutes feels like it whizzes by then try thirty minutes, but if twenty minutes is way too challenging to begin with, then gradually work your way up. I’d suggest seeing if you can do this Savasana once a day for five to seven consecutive days OR you might like to try The 365 Savasana Project – click here for details. Judith Hanson Lasater, who I trained to teach Restorative Yoga with, jokes that restorative poses are magic, the magic being that they only work if you use them!

The main thing is to give it a try and to be kind to yourself along the way.